


Storm Queen No Longer

by Autumn_Llleaves



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Depression, F/M, Forced Marriage, Jealousy, Recovery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-28
Updated: 2015-01-28
Packaged: 2018-03-09 12:36:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,742
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3249941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Autumn_Llleaves/pseuds/Autumn_Llleaves
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nothing can bring the Storm Queen back. After the deepest humiliation of her life, Argella Durrandon has nothing to cling to.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Storm Queen No Longer

An enormous dragon with bright golden eyes was sitting at the gates, wiggling his tail playfully as a kitten would. Argella looked at it with dismay. Dragons – dragons everywhere. Only three of them, yet they somehow managed to haunt the whole continent.

The young woman sighed. Before her father's death, these creatures caused various feelings in her. First great fascination. Then bitter hatred as Aegon humiliated Father and advanced with an army towards Storm's End. But now – only slight irritation, nothing else. Argella's soul seemed to have turned to stone, all her stormy temper, worthy of a Durrandon heiress, dulled. And she was not a Durrandon anymore. A Baratheon. Wife to Lord Orys, Hand of the King. How Father would have raged.

Even thinking of Father, she couldn't bring herself to care. Nothing mattered now. Since that fateful night, Argella Durrandon, the Storm Queen, was no longer.

_**Five months earlier** _

_She sat on her throne, her guard around her. The windows were dark – night was upon the stormlands. But nobody needed light to see the camp of Orys Baratheon, the bastard brother of the Dragon King, less than a league from the castle gates._

_"We shall perish honorably," she announced. "As Father would have wished. As Durran would have wanted his descendants to do. We won't be brought to our knees like some riverland weaklings."_

_Commander Andon looked at her doubtfully:_

_"The weaklings as you call them, my Queen, had the largest and strongest castle of Westeros to protect them."_

_"They weren't united like we are," Argella frowned. "They hated Harren, so Harrenhal or no Harrenhal, a ruler despised by his people has no chances in a war."_

_"Queen Rhaenys is with Baratheon," another guard pointed out. "And her dragon as well," he shuddered. "My wife and babes are in Dorne with my good-father… oh, when they hear of me… roasted like a quail…"_

_"They will be proud," Argella finished. "We shall die like heroes in old songs. For Storm's End!"_

_Only yesterday such a phrase elicited the cries of "Storm Queen! Storm Queen!" all over the throne room. But now all of a sudden there was silence, broken only by uncomfortable murmurs._

_"Everyone wishes for a peace," Andon said, his respectful tone changing. "Except you, Argella Durrandon."_

_"I trust in you," she replied, trying not to tremble. "You were my father's greatest friend…"_

_"But I do not intend to die just now."_

_He blew a whistle – and all of a sudden, Argella was thrown on the floor. Andon himself put some dirty kerchief over her mouth, and the formerly loyal soldiers pinned her down and cut her clothes._

_She fought like a cornered animal. But a woman had no chances of overpowering a whole garrison. Soon, she was chained and helpless._

_"Well, I hope Lord Baratheon accepts this wench as a peace offering," was the last thing she heard before fainting._

That was the death of the Storm Queen. Independent, defiant, stubborn, hot-headed… As her own people, for whom she lived and fought and was ready to die, handed her to the enemy, she lost the Queen from her soul. What was there left for her?

_Her conscience returned slowly. She felt warmth – warmth and softness. She realized she was no longer naked and chained. A dull pain remained in her wrists and ankles where the cuffs had been, but they were gone. She was wrapped in a fine cloak, and a pair of hands was holding her steady._

_"Lady Argella!" a gentle voice called to her. "Lady Argella, you are safe!"_

_She opened her eyes to see the once-hated face of Orys Baratheon. Her vision was blurred, and she understood she was crying._

_The black-haired, black-eyed man drew her closer._

_"Hush now, my lady," he whispered. "Your father died like a true Durrandon. I faced him in single combat, and I can say: there are few man as courageous and fearsome in battle as he was."_

_"Oh-h!" Argella collapsed against him with a hard sob._

_"Have some wine, my lady, you've been through a dreadful ordeal… There you are… I swear I have respected Lord Argilac before and will always respect his memory, even though he was an enemy of my king. Aegon has granted me Storm's End – but though there are no male Durrandons left, the sigil and the motto will remain here. As my own."_

_Argella heard the unspoken hint in his voice. He didn't mean to keep only the symbols of her family. He wanted to keep her, too. The dethroned and dishonored Storm Queen._

_The day before the notion would have sent her into a fierce rage. The bastard, the killer… But what could possibly matter now?_

So she did become his wife, Lady of Storm's End. She sat by Queen Rhaenys's side at celebrations, she had the respect of smallfolk once again. She had a handsome warrior husband who took every opportunity to show his love to her. Yet none of it touched her. She felt like a walking corpse, broken and bruised.

_**Three months earlier** _

_The shouts and laughs of their wedding guests were still audible. Goodness, it was near dawn – how long did they intend to stay awake? The wine will come to an end in a few hours…_

_"Sweet Argella," her new husband spoke as he lazily twined his fingers in her hair._

_Argella turned to him, and he covered her face with light kisses._

_"My Storm Queen," Orys whispered sleepily._

_He appeared to like calling her so. Or was he perhaps shaming her, playing the gallant and just one?.. No, not him. Never him. During the two months between the castle's surrender and the wedding Argella learned enough of Orys Baratheon, and whatever he was, he wasn't mean._

_He called her his Storm Queen this night several times as he took his pleasure._

_"I'm not a Queen anymore," she corrected him now. Orys looked straight at her, the sleep gone from his eyes._

_"You will always be one to me," he confessed. "More so than Queen Rhaenys. More even than Queen Visenya."_

_She said nothing._

_"Although you're right in a sense," Orys admitted sadly. "I haven't seen the former fire in your eyes since the day Storm's End fell. Sometimes I think I'm wedded to a shadow of the former Argella. Not that it makes me love my wife less."_

_"I'm tired, my lord," she closed her eyes and turned away to avoid further conversation._

Orys claimed to have loved her since he laid eyes on her from afar, when Aegon came to Westeros as a guest, years ago. He showered her with attention at daytime, and his passion engulfed her at night. He was faithful – that is, since he became Lord of the Stormlands, she hadn't heard of any mistresses or whores of his.

Sometimes, responding to his embraces, she wondered whether the spark of life could be restored in her.

She listened dully to the voices in Orys's study. Queen Rhaenys was visiting. On dragonback, as per usual – she adored to fly. She said that a matter of the utmost importance brought her here, to be discussed only with the King's Hand. Even Argella wasn't allowed in the study. Though no one paid attention to her being right by the door.

"I'm telling you, my Queen, I will not have it," Orys was saying. "I shall never betray my lady wife. Nor my King's trust. And you – if I may put it so – should be ashamed! You have a husband like Aegon, and you're ready to break your vows to him!"

Argella froze.

"Oh, now, my dear Orys, don't be so prudent!" the golden voice of Rhaenys rang back. "As if your lady wife is loyal to you! She looks like a dried fish when by your side – she must have somewhere some Durrandon supporter support her in every sense of the word!"

So this was the important matter. Not that it was surprising. Everyone knew it. Unlike the haughty but strict and honest Visenya, Rhaenys was always ready to enjoy herself with admirers when her brother husband was away. Why shouldn't she come to Orys as well? After all, since Argella was cold and hardly responsive, a lovely queen would make a welcome change.

"Well, my Queen, I trust my wife's fidelity…" but Orys sounded doubtful.

He will go to court on some pretext. He will come to the chambers of Rhaenys at night and call her his Queen and play with her rich glossy hair. He will tell her about the state affairs. He will comfort her in her griefs. He will sit by her side and only give cold formal bows to Argella…

Blind with fury, Argella stormed inside the study.

"Ah, this is the matter you wished to discuss, Your Grace!" she yelled at the Queen, not thinking about the consequences. "You should have at least removed me from the castle! And you…" she turned to Orys. "Where are your promises? You said I am more Queen to you than either of Aegon's wives!"

Suddenly Orys's arms were around her, and Rhaenys was smiling from the opposite corner – smiling without a hint of sarcasm.

"Finally," Orys whispered, "finally my Storm Queen is back."

"What do you mean?" she pulled away from him and eyed him suspiciously.

"I feared you'd never recover after that awful night," he said. "It has been almost six moons, and you're still sullen and downcast. I would prefer your hatred for your father's murderer to this submission."

"It was in an honorable combat," she sighed, referring to the murder. "But… but you mean…"

"Aegon offered this as last resort. He said that if anything else failed, jealousy will put you out of your sleep. You didn't seem to bother with leaving Rhaenys and myself alone, so we staged a whole seduction scene. I hoped you were somewhere around."

"Truly, my lady," Rhaenys winked at Argella, "when I betray Aegon, it will not be with his most trusted friend and confidant. Especially when the said one is married to a fierce lady with _all the fury of Westeros hers._ "

She laughed to tears and left the study. Soon, the sound of dragon wings flapping echoed from the sky.

That night, when Orys called her his Storm Queen, Argella smiled triumphantly. She will not let anyone take him, not Queen Rhaenys, not anyone ever.

"Ours is the Fury," she whispered.

"Aye, my love."


End file.
